Chapter 31: Chapter 31

Pain flared as the skin on my leg split open, alerting me to the threat of the weapon. I was right. The gun was real.

I slammed into her midsection, and Saige and I tumbled to the ground. The pistol flew from her hands, and I dropped my baton.

The commotion drew the attention of all the women, and Rena used the distraction to spring from her hiding spot and open fire on Genevieve. Rena emptied her entire clip on her as Gabby ran out to kick the knife out of one of the women’s hands.

A dangerous brawl ensued.

The adrenaline drove me to my feet despite the pain, and I staggered as I struggled to remain standing. I locked onto Saige, ignoring the other fights happening around me.

I knew, without a doubt, that she was the immediate threat. Getting rid of Saige would stop the others.

She sat up with a grimace, her hand clutching her bleeding forehead. She seemed disoriented, as though she had hit her head on something.

I limped toward her, catching her by surprise as I threw myself at her, my fist raised and pointed at her face. It landed on her eye, causing her to scream.

She lifted her knee in retaliation, and it sent a heavy blow into my stomach. I coughed and doubled over, collapsing to the ground.

She quickly shook off her daze and kicked me again, throwing me off her. She got up and stumbled toward her gun.

I desperately rolled and grabbed her feet, sinking my nails into her skin and tugging her back.

She turned around and kicked at my face, but I managed to dodge in time. I grunted as she tried to shake me off, but I refused to relinquish my hold.

This was a matter of life and death, and I clung to whatever strength I had to fight her. Desperation gripped me, and I pulled my torso up, aiming my mouth at her ankle and seizing a large chunk of her exposed skin between my teeth.

She screamed once more and lost her balance. The second she slammed to the ground, I threw myself on her again, holding her down as best as I could as she flailed around.

I looked in the direction of the pistol, my heart racing so fast it threatened to tear itself from my chest.

I had to live.

I estimated that I could just about reach the pistol, and I stretched my hand out to grab it. But in that brief moment, Saige gathered just enough strength to roll us both over, pulling my hair and forcing my arm away from the weapon.

I screamed as she landed a sharp uppercut to my chin, stunning me for a moment.

She reached over me to grab the gun, but I knew I couldn’t let her get it. I blinked against the dizziness invading my mind and gripped her arm. I twisted it, causing her to cry out in pain.

Then I threw another punch at her face, watching as it connected to the cut on her forehead. She winced, blinking as if she were dazed.

Using the split second of reprieve, I scrambled toward the gun. The second my fingers gripped it, a wave of empowerment washed over me.

I twisted around and aimed at her. Our eyes met.

Her forest green to my dark brown. I saw her fear, and I felt mine. There was no time for hesitation. I pulled the trigger.

The bullet embedded itself in her stomach. I watched as she stared at the wound, her mouth agape, as if she couldn’t believe that I had shot her. As blood gushed out of the wound, her body fell sideways, and she tumbled to the ground.

Within moments, she’d lost too much blood and was dead.

My mind went blank, and my hands trembled to keep hold of the gun as I drew heavy breaths. My chest hurt, and my stomach churned. I relived the moment when I pulled the trigger. The way she looked at me, the wrath in her eyes.

~It was her or me~, I thought. ~There was no other way…~

“Saige. Eliminated,” echoed through the other’s badges.

I rolled onto my hands and knees and hurled. The pure acidic taste of my breakfast burst on my tongue as I heaved. Tears burned my eyes, yet my fingers still curled around the pistol like it was my lifeline.

“Gah!” Gabby’s grunt brought me back to reality.

I wiped my mouth and looked to see Gabby on her back, using a thick branch to block the knife of the woman straddling her.

Rena was engaging in hand-to-hand combat with another woman, and the third woman was leaning against the tree, sobbing and clutching her thigh, a knife deeply embedded in it.

Genevieve was nowhere to be seen.

This was chaos.

Rage built inside of me.

Instead of finishing the game like a sane person by trying to be one of the first twenty women to cross the finish line, these women chose to hunt and target me instead. I could have died if I hadn’t had proper training.

This could have all been avoided, yet they chose to kill.

I tucked the gun into the hem of my pants and, with a grunt, forced myself to my feet. The pain in my right leg threatened to immobilize me, yet I pushed through it.

I needed to help my friends.

I grabbed my baton and walked to where Gabby was fending off the woman threatening to stab her. They were so focused on each other that they didn’t hear me approach.

I took a deep, steady breath to calm my trembling hands and gripped the baton tightly. I swung at the back of the woman’s head with as much strength as I could muster.

The weapon connected, and her body stiffened. She fell atop Gabriella, knocked out.

I didn’t waste any time and turned toward the woman Rena was fighting. Fear clouded her eyes as she saw me approach.

Just as I lifted the baton to swing again, she dodged Rena’s punch and pushed her into me.

~Oof.~

Rena’s head slammed into mine, and both of us fell to the ground. Through my blurry vision, I watched as the woman disappeared through the trees.

“Crystal. Eliminated.”

Rena rolled off me with a groan, clutching her head. I remained on my back and blinked rapidly, trying to clear my cloudy vision.

“Genevieve ran away,” Rena said, sounding disappointed.

Gabriella walked over to stare down at us. She looked the least battered out of the three of us.

She grimaced. “You guys look like shit.”

Rena quirked a smile. “Comes with the job.”

I said nothing. I was numb to my emotions at the moment.

Gabriella looked at Saige’s body, a complicated expression on her face. “She’s dead, isn’t she?”

I said nothing and simply stared up at the cloudy sky above.

She sighed. “You didn’t have a choice, Cat. It was either her or us. I’m glad that it was her.” She tried to console me.

“I agree,” Rena said. “I’m upset that I didn’t get to eliminate Genevieve, but we can always try in the next game.”

Right.

The next game.

There were three more games to go. This wasn’t over. I had to reach the other end of the forest and cross the finish line and then climb my way to the top. It was the only way to find my aunt. The only way to shield my sister.

I sat up and looked at the woman cowering against the tree. It was only now that I registered her sobs as she stared at Saige’s dead body.

“What should we do with her?” I asked the other two.

They turned to stare as well. They frowned.

“As much as what they did pisses me off,” Gabby said, “I’m not a coldhearted killer. She can’t move, so there’s no way she’s crossing the finish line. She’s out of the games. Let’s leave her be.”

Her thoughts matched mine perfectly.

One body was enough for me today.

“We should take a break,” Rena said. “Calm ourselves a bit. Given all the fighting and the gunshots still echoing through the air, it’s safe to assume that we’re still in a good position.”

Gabriella picked up her knife and inspected it. “Let’s cut some time and run through the thick vines instead of going around them. This should be sharp enough to get us through.” She pointed in the direction of dense foliage.

I nodded in agreement. “Many of the women probably avoided the vines, so it will take them longer to reach the finish line. If we cut through there, we’ll be able to avoid additional confrontations as well.”

Rena blew out a breath. “It’s a good thing that most of them chose the gun. They have no choice but to go around.”

“Though I’m not looking forward to the itchy skin after this,” Gabby said.

“You know what they say. Ain’t no rest for the wicked,” Rena replied sarcastically.

The monotonous voice within the badge sounded again: “Ten women have successfully made it to the end of the forest. Only ten spots available.”

Gabby sighed. “That’s our cue. If we want a spot, we need to move now.”

I took a deep breath and steeled myself as I took her offered hand and forced myself up. I clenched my jaw against the pain and limped forward.

Gabriella eyed me worriedly. “Do you need help?”

I shook my head. “I’m fine,” I clipped. “Let’s start walking.”

It was time to end this game.